What happened? Tell us your tale.
I almost had to pay up for not being
cautious enough. Coming from Buenos Aires, and having lived in Mozambique, and
travelled solo non-stop for the past 3 years I am always careful and alert. But
the sunrise in Copacabana (Rio de Janeiro) after partying all night, and seeing
people going for a morning jog, fooled me into a fake sense of security.
I was with an American friend and instead
of heading back to the hostel; we sat by the water on the beach. Copacabana
beach is wide as! At that point it was about 100 meters from the road where the
sand began to the water.
The beach was all but crowded, few people
jogged by. 2 men, in their 20ies, casually asked for the time as they were
jogging by, - MISTAKE NUMBER 2 (mistake number 1 was 2 gringo-looking people
going to the beach in Copacabana at 6 am) instead of realizing what was going
to happen (which was pretty obvious) I took out my crappy beat up cell phone
and told them the time (I’m still angry at myself for falling into the trap
like that). I looked down to put my cell phone back in my handbag and as I
looked back up again both men were sitting in front of us.
I sensed something was not right but as
it was the first time I was getting mugged I gave them the benefit of the
doubt. They where blabbing
something to us in a threatening tone (I later came to realize they were trying
to speak English and where saying something like “gimme money, gimme cell phone,
gimme camera, gimme everything”). By this time was certain we were getting
mugged, but I’m still not sure why I played dumb, and while I asked “What?
What?” I got on my knees thinking ‘if I run for it I’m never going to make it’.
Apparently my getting on my knees was something totally unexpected for them, and
they lost it. The one closest to me got out a knife, and threatened me, “knife
knife” while he stabbed the air in front of me. SH*T! I was so scared! And so
angry with myself.
I couldn’t play dumb anymore without
risking our lives. I knew we weren’t going to get killed in public, and I knew
they didn't have a gun or else they would have shown it to us as it's a lot
more menacing than a knife, but we might have ended with a couple of stabs.
Plus I wasn’t sure how much my friend was understanding of the whole situation.
That, together with making it to the road safe, where my main concerns.
“Ohhhh!!! Knife!!!” I exclaimed loudly
trying to sound like I was just realizing what was going on “Money, yes. Cell
phone, yes. Here, here” And that is where I made a mental note to thank my
sister and get her presents (yes, stupid thing to go through my head at that
precise moment).
It was now or never. I pretended to
rummage through my purse and get my wallet, instead I got a good grip on my
sister’s pepper spray, placed the finger where it should go, and as the guy
closest to me reached out for the ‘money’ I was about to hand to him, I sprayed
him full on the face.
Things were a rush from then on, the 1st
guy was thrown backwards in surprise with his face full of the brown sticky
liquid from the pepper spray, I emptied the remaining contents on the 2nd guy
as he was trying to get up while understanding what was going on, and at the
same time I started screaming to my friend “RUN, RUN, RUN!” and we ran like hell,
I had never run so fast on sand in my life.
And the thieves ran as well, in the other
direction, blinded, trying to pretend nothing had happened, washing their faces
occasionally. What waited if they got caught was way worse than bearing the
pain from the pepper spray.
Of course, no cops around, and my nose
and mouth started hurting, as I must have touched my face with the hand sprayed
them with.
What was the outcome of the event?
An end full of adrenalin, and my friend
hugging me telling me I was f**king crazy.
We were both safe and unharmed with all
our belongings, which after all turned to be 10 Brazilian Reais on his end and
about 80 on mine plus a beat up cell phone. And my credit cards. Hardly worth
the risk when I come to think of it.
What advice would you give to other travellers to avoid
or survive the situation?
I DON’T recommend anyone doing this, I
did something stupid and I solved it instinctively and because I was lucky to
have remembered to take the pepper spray. I never imagined I would react like
this, although I guess that helped me even more, because the thieves were
caught totally off-guard.
Trying to keep your head clear is very
important.
After that, I don't go around with my
credit cards or more money than I need. I still keep the battered old cell
phone.
I don't take pepper spray with me anymore
unless I will be walking on my own at night (which I tend to do a lot as Buenos
Aires at night is beautiful).
Just wanted to share my scary travel
story. I guess that was the scariest thing that ever happened to me whilst
traveling.
Travel Safety Advice From World Nomads
The biggest question you need to ask when being confronted by someone who wants your possessions or cash is this.
"How much is my well being actually worth?"
If
you have any sense of self worth, you'll probably place it at a
thousand times what you have in your pockets. So it really is a no
brainer. Don't act dumb, or pretend you don't understand. You are just
staving off the inevitable. You are in the situation, so just comply. A
couple of hundred dollars is not worth debilitating physical injury, or
even worse, death. You don't know who you are dealing with or what they
are capable of. Putting up a fight will only enrage your assailant
further.
We are not encouraging you to be
lily-livered, or be weak - being a person who can stand ground is a
massive part of adventure travel. But you have to have your wits about
you. If you are being robbed, you are being robbed. It's as simple as
that. If you fight back, chances are you'll find yourself with a fat
lip, a cut head, or a stabbed back. Which, if you need to go to
hospital, will cost you even MORE. (Of course, if you have travel insurance, that may ease your financial woes if it comes to that)
The
best thing you can do, like you say, is minimize what can be taken off
you if the situation arises. If you take only what you need for the day,
you'll lose marginally less than if you are unwise about your funds.
Important Travel
Insurance Information
World Nomads travel
insurance policies (as with most travel insurance policies) would require you,
in the event you are injured while travelling, to please:
•contact your
emergency assistance team as soon as possible
•attend the nearest
medical facility as soon as possible and/or;
If you are robbed
while you are travelling, you will need to provide:
•an official report
(police) confirming the incident took place
•proof of ownership of
the items that have been lost or stolen (receipts of purchase, boxes,
instruction manuals).
If you are unsure that
the documents you have are enough to support you claim, please contact your
emergency assistance team or insurer emergency assistance team for further
advice.
Please note that how
you were looking after your items at the time of an incident occurring is also
considered by any claims team.
Related Articles:
How to Travel Safely Around Brazil
Staying Safe in Rio
